Skoal/Copenhagen Promotion..after March 28th..C-store update: Philip Morris $1.00 off promotion Skoal and Copenhagen... Although it is increasing prices on its cigarettes, Altria also plans to cut prices for Copenhagen and Skoal, the smokeless tobacco brands it acquired through its purchase of UST Inc. by 62 cents per tin, according to reports. Dow Jones reported Altria had been widely expected to cut some smokeless tobacco prices as UST's premium brands faced tough competition from cheaper competing products before the acquisition. Altria - Philip Morris to raise cigarette prices (as of March 9, 2009)..) We wonder if the current $1.00 promotion will end March 28th as planned or will it continue in addition to the 62 cents cut in price.

Skoal's 75th anniversary - The Great Brotherhood Comeback.. - it looks like Altria will continue with promoting Skoal's 75th anniversary.. MORE COMING..

Camel SNUS -Latest c-store owner comment - this store is close to a community college. At one time a few cans of Camel SNUS did sell - just about all to students. Now the fellow tells us it hardly sells and the fellow just waits to get free cans from the Reynolds' salesperson.

March 7, 2009 - R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. said today that it will raise the list price on its cigarette brands in the range of 41 cents to 78 cents a pack for wholesale customers. The increase goes into effect March 16, 2009.

The cost of a pack of Camel, Kool, Winston and Salem is going up 44 cents, while Pall Mall, Doral and Capri are going up 41 cents, said David Howard, a spokesman for Reynolds. The manufacturer's nonsupport brands are increasing between 71 cents and 78 cents a pack.

Altria Group Inc. is raising the list price for brands that include Marlboro, Virginia Slims and Parliament by $7.10 a carton, and the list price for brands that include Benson & Hedges, Chesterfield and Merit by $8.07 a carton.

Lorillard Tobacco Co. also is increasing its list price for its brands by $7.10 a carton, according to Pat Shehan, the owner of Tarheel Tobacco in Winston-Salem. Lorillard also had a price increase in February 2009.Besides the list-price increase, Reynolds also is reducing its discount rate at retail. "The net result is that we will be aligned with our competitors in terms of pricing," Howard said.

The price hikes by the manufacturers had been expected by analysts and consumers ever since Congress passed the increase in the federal excise tax on cigarettes to pay for expansion of the State Children's Health Insurance Program.

Anti-smoking groups hailed the approval of the SCHIP program in part because analysts estimate that cigarette sales will decline by as much as 8 percent as a result of the tax increase.

Shehan estimated that the federal tax increase raises the cost of a carton of cigarettes by $6.17.

March 7, 2009 - Altria Group Inc., the largest U.S. tobacco company, will raise prices on Marlboro and 17 brands on March 9 ahead of an increase in federal tobacco excise taxes beginning April 1, 2009. Altrias Philip Morris USA will charge distributors 71 cents more for a pack of Marlboro, the top-selling U.S. cigarette, Parliament, Virginia Slims and six other varieties, said Bill Phelps, an Altria spokesman. In addition, the company will raise list prices on Bensen & Hedges and eight other brands by 81 cents a pack.

Altria said the price increases, which will be effective from March 9, are due to costs related to the upcoming raise in federal excise tax on cigarettes to $1 from 39 cents per pack starting April 1, 2009. Last month, Philip Morris also raised prices by about 9 cents per pack. The increase is the second by Philip Morris USA since December and comes before U.S. tobacco excise taxes rise by 62 cents a pack. Philip Morris USA is raising prices again..; Altria/Lorillard cigarette prices increase...The company plans to cut prices for the smokeless tobacco brands it acquired through its purchase of UST Inc. by 62 cents per tin to compete better in the U.S. tobacco market, which has seen declining volumes amid higher taxes and bans on smoking in public places.

An Altria spokesman said the list price increases on cigarettes are primarily intended to cover the costs of a federal excise tax increase that goes into effect April 1.

Although it is increasing prices on its cigarettes, Altria also plans to cut prices for Copenhagen and Skoal, the smokeless tobacco brands it acquired through its purchase of UST Inc. by 62 cents per tin, according to reports.

These graphic warnings will figure on the cigarette packs sold in Mauritius as from the 1st of June 2009. Mauritius will then be the first country in Africa to implement article 11 (of the Framework Convention on Tobacco Control where Parties agree to adopt effective measures to ensure tobacco product packaging and labeling have large, clear health warnings and do not promote tobacco products in false, misleading or deceptive ways) with a world record of 65% of the surface of the cigarette pack covered.

This is the result of the earnest collaboration and hard work of ViSa and the Ministry of Health, and also thanks to the excellent help and support of the Framework Convention Alliance (FCA).

March 6, 2009 - Starting September 2009, tobacco products in theUAE) will carry a message and a warning that will be hard to ignore. Graphics of blackened lungs and a haemorrhage-impacted brain, among others, will provide stark warnings about the dangers on cigarette packs sold in the country, following in the footsteps of the UK, Canada and Brazil.

Dr Wedad Al Maidoor, head of the National Tobacco Control Committee, told Gulf News the World Health Organisation (WHO) donated the pictures to the UAE to help with its tobacco control efforts.Health officials hope the graphic warning, with its inherent shock value, will help deliver the message better and discourage people to smoke. Previous revamp of the health warning on cigarette packs in September 2007 only required manufacturers to enlarge the warning text and to make the warning available in English and Arabic.

The graphic warning is one of the many steps the UAE, a signatory of the WHO Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (FCTC), is taking to clamp down on smoking. A federal anti-smoking draft law is expected to be passed into law soon by the Cabinet and President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan after the Federal National Council (FNC) approved it last month. The draft law, which has been delayed for more than two years, includes several points in keeping with the FCTC requirements, including restricting advertising and sponsorship, limiting exposure to second-hand tobacco smoke, and increasing tobacco prices and tax. Under the draft law, advertising of tobacco products in all forms of media in the UAE, which includes private television stations, cable networks, newspapers and magazines, will be banned. Violators can expect fines ranging from Dh500,000 to Dh1 million. – Gulf News

March 6, 2009 - Ontario is looking to become the latest jurisdiction to go after tobacco companies for misrepresenting the health risks of smoking and costing the province billions of dollars. Attorney General Chris Bentley has introduced new legislation that, if passed, could allow the provincial government to seek billions of dollars in damages from the three big Canadian cigarette manufacturers: Imperial Tobacco; Rothmans, Benson and Hedges; and JTI-Macdonald. If Ontario doesn't act now, it could also miss its chance to sue JTI-Macdonald, which is under bankruptcy protection.The legislation is based on a similar bill in British Columbia that alleges tobacco companies marketed light cigarettes as safer than regular ones, and targeted their marketing toward children. (B.C.'s efforts yielded positive results.) Ontario is looking to become the latest jurisdiction to go after tobacco companies for misrepresenting the health risks of smoking and costing the province billions of dollars.

Attorney General Chris Bentley has introduced new legislation that, if passed, could allow the provincial government to seek billions of dollars in damages from the three big Canadian cigarette manufacturers: Imperial Tobacco; Rothmans, Benson and Hedges; and JTI-Macdonald.

"Ontario taxpayers should not have to pay for health-care costs if they are caused by alleged wrongs by others," Bentley said Wednesday.

"This is about holding tobacco companies accountable."

The legislation is based on a similar bill in British Columbia that alleges tobacco companies marketed light cigarettes as safer than regular ones, and targeted their marketing toward children. It is also alleged the companies conspired to hold back research about the harmful effects of tobacco and to undermine the health warnings that had been issued, Bentley said, noting those allegations have yet to be proved in court.

March 6, 2009 - The U.S. Supreme Court voted 6-3, that pharmaceutical companies aren’t shielded from suit by the Food and Drug Administration’s approval of a treatment and its packaging information. Justice John Paul Stevens, writing for the majority: “Congress did not intend FDA oversight to be the exclusive means of ensuring drug safety and effectiveness.”

The decision marks the second time during its current term that the high court has said federal law doesn’t preempt consumer lawsuits. The justices in December said smokers can sue tobacco companies over the marketing of “light” cigarettes. (U.S. Supreme Court Rules Against Big Tobacco..)

March 5, 2009 - L&M Cigarettes - Philip Morris has now come up with a catchy new meaning for L&M - Love the Moment.. L&M cigarettes have an interesting history. L&M cigarettes were first manufactured by Ligget & Myers Tobacco Company in Durham, NC. Liggett & Myers Tobacco Company was founded in 1873 after a partnership between J.E. Liggett and George Smith Meyers was established. The brand name of the cigarette was derived from the initials of its manufacturer L&M (Liggett & Meyers). They were an independent company for more than 130 years. Besides L&M other cigarette brands included: Chesterfield (1917:- There were three national brands of cigarettes on the US market: Lucky Strike, Camel and Chesterfield), Lark and Eve.

In 1976 company changed its name to the Liggett Group, Inc., with Liggett & Myers Tobacco Company as a division. In 1999 saw the formation of Vector Tobacco Inc. Also in 1999, Liggett Vector Brands Inc. sold L&M, Lark and Chesterfield (Chesterfield cigarettes was one of the three most smoked brands of cigarettes in the United States) brands to Philip Morris Companies Inc., now known as the Altria Group. Philip Morris has positioned L&M in the mid-price segment along with Chesterfield. L&M is one of the top five international brands and gaining in popularity in the states.

Camel SNUS - Hate to admit this but they tell me that Camel SNUS is selling better. In fact - one c-store owner tells me he was about to order snus - for the very 1st time - usually the stuff just expires but the RJR salesman sent him for free another 60 cans of Camel SNUS - more Frost than Mellow. Hard to beat these guys if they keep on dumping free cans of snus on the market. A few weeks ago a fellow came into the c-store and bought a can of snus and the owner gave him around 25-30 free cans that were soon to expire.

"This is a historic day in the fight against the prevalence of tobacco use, its toll on human lives and the clear and pervasive threat tobacco still poses to public health. Granting FDA regulatory authority over tobacco is long overdue," Representative Henry Waxman (D-Calif.), chairman of the Energy & Commerce Committee said in a statement announcing the committee's approval of H.R. 1256. "At its core, the legislation is about protecting our children and our youth. I am hopeful that this year we will finally see this bill enacted into law."

March 5, 2009 - Our 1000th News Brief..Fictitious Case Report: Sometime after December 31, 2009. Fire marshals are investigating whether an errant lit cigarette may have caused Friday's fatal house fire. Rosemary Jones, 62, died following blaze at her house. Ms. Jones was an inveterate (hard-nose, long established, deep-rooted) cigarette smoker of Marlboro Lights for over 30-years. The fire marshal in charge reasoned that if Jones had been smoking Camels instead of Marlboro she would be alive today.

The R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Company the maker of Camel cigarettes, will be manufacturing all of its cigarette brands using "fire-safe" technology by the end of 2009.

Altria Group, Inc., the parent of Philip Morris USA the maker of Marlboro has refused to set a date to convert their brands to fire-safe cigarettes. If Philip Morris, with over 50% of the domestic cigarette market, would agree to start making all of its cigarettes fire-safe all other cigarette makers like Lorillard (with around 10 percent of the cigarette market) would join in.

March 5, 2009 - The results of a Swedish study showed that a growing majority of adolescents support strong parental intervention to help them refrain from tobacco, but preferably not in a punitive manner. The most effective actions parents could take include dissuading their children from smoking, not smoking themselves and not allowing their children to smoke at home. Both non-smokers and smokers supported the idea of parental action in a similar way. Eighty-nine percent of the adolescents expected their parents to act against smoking and 85% against snus use.Swedish national data were collected in 1987, 1994 and 2003 by a questionnaire from mailed to homes, in total to 13500 persons. The annual samples, which were random and national representative, consisted of 4500 young people aged 13, 15 and 17 yr, 1500 individuals per age group.

Background:Sweden and Finland, neighboring countries in Scandinavia, share features in health and social policies but retain a few differences in tobacco policy, including oral tobacco product regulation. This paper analyses the differences between tobacco policy and tobacco use between these two countries. Material: Representative data sets from both countries, for age groups 18 to 64, were used to compare the status of tobacco use. The study covered the years 1988/89, 1996/97 and 2004/05. Results: Among men, daily use of tobacco products is more common in Sweden than in Finland. The daily smoking rate for men in Sweden is 16% compared to 28% in Finland. In Sweden, 27% of men use snuff daily and 17% of never smoking men reported daily use of snuff. In Finland, 3% of all males report daily use of snuff. Concurrent snuff use was linked to occasional smoking in Sweden, where 23% of male daily snuff users smoke occasionally. Among women smoking prevalence has decreased significantly in Sweden during the study period, but no real change in daily smoking can be detected in Finland. Conclusions: Tobacco control measures did gain good results among women in Sweden whereas in Finland development was modest. In Sweden, tobacco use has increased mainly due to an increase in snuff use, and snuff seems to appeal not only to switchers, but to young males without a history of smoking.Read more...

AlternativeMarch 4, 2009 - The U.S. House Energy and Commerce committee today rejected a Republican substitute to the FDA tobacco bill (Youth Prevention and Tobacco Harm Reduction Act) by a vote of 13 in favor and 34 opposed. The Republican amendment was offered by Rep. Steve Buyer of Indiana. Buyer's amendment would have created a new tobacco harm reduction center within the Department of Health and Human Services. The center would combine smoking cessation programs with industry strategies to reduce the harm from tobacco products, Republicans said. Aides to Sen. Richard Burr, R-N.C., said he may introduce a similar bill in the Senate.

March 4, 2009 - A proposed North Carolina state ban on smoking in public places passed its first test Tuesday, March 3, 2009 in a legislative committee. The North Carolina House Health Committee approved the measure on a voice vote with support from Rep. Bruce Goforth. Goforth switched his vote from 2007 when he was one of a minority of Democrats whose opposition kept a ban from passage on the House floor. (Statewide Smoking Ban Fails to Clear North Carolina..)

The bill would forbid smoking in restaurants, bars and most other indoor public places and workplaces with the goal of protecting workers and customers from secondhand smoke. Hotels would have to designate at least 80 percent of their rooms as nonsmoking.

March 4, 2009 - Today, the U.S. House of Representatives Commerce and Energy Committee is taking up legislation (Family Smoking Prevention and Tobacco Control Act - text of bill H.R. 1256), that would place tobacco under the control of the Food and Drug Administration. Among other things, the bill would restrict the ways tobacco companies market cigarettes, require them to disclose the ingredients in their products and place larger warning labels on packages, and give the FDA the authority to require the removal of harmful chemicals and additives from cigarettes.Some critics say the bill, largely the product of years of negotiation between cigarette giant Philip Morris and the advocacy group Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids, does not go far enough. "This is a big gift to Philip Morris and a big scam," said Joel L. Nitzkin, chairman of the tobacco-control task force of the American Association of Public Health Physicians. "Our initial impression was, 'Gee, this would be great.' But when we read through the entire 160 pages, we were horrified by what we saw."

R.J. Reynolds Tobacco Co. and other competitors oppose the bill, saying new restrictions on marketing and product development are likely to freeze market share, giving an unfair advantage to Phillip Morris.

There are questions about whether the FDA is the agency to regulate tobacco. Consumers may get the impression that tobacco is safe if it is regulated by the FDA.

Sen. Richard Burr (R-N.C.), whose state is home to R.J. Reynolds, has threatened to filibuster the legislation when it reaches the Senate.

The Mission: To support smokers who want to stop by providing an opportunity to do so, and highlighting the effective help that is available.The No Smoking Day campaign is organised by a charity of the same name run by four full-time staff. The charity is supported by a coalition of governmental and voluntary sector organisations with an interest in health; it manages the campaign alongside steering groups and partner organisations right across the United Kingdom.

The No Smoking Day campaign helps smokers who want to quit by creating a supportive environment for them, and by highlighting the many sources of help and advice available.

The Day remains the UK's foremost public health event, bringing together professionals who share an interest in promoting health, generating significant media coverage, and providing an annual focus for the three in every four smokers who want to stop.

Every year over a million smokers will use No Smoking Day to try to quit.

The No Smoking Day charity also conducts year-round initiatives to encourage and support smokers who want to quit. These projects target specific communities, and aim to address health inequalities by coordinating networks of public health professionals from across the public, voluntary and private sectors.

March 3, 2009 - A gradual increase in minimum tax rates on cigarettes, to at least €1.50 (USD1.87, GBP1.33) per pack by 2014, and other tobacco products, was backed by the Economic Affairs Committee but it advocated smaller increases than those proposed by the Commission.

The aim of the proposed legislation is to avoid distorting the single market and to foster tax convergence (tobacco tax rates currently differ from Member State to Member State). This should also help to protect health, if used in combination with a ban on tobacco advertising and with education campaigns, said the committee, in a report drafted by Zsolt Laszlo Becsey (EPP-ED, HU).

Convergence would be fostered by applying the same minimum requirement to cigarettes and other tobacco merchandise. The increases, if approved by the Council, would be introduced gradually, ending on January 2014.

March 3, 2009 - Northern Ireland Assembly (the devolved legislature of Northern Ireland Assembly) has approved a ban on the display of tobacco items in shops in Northern Ireland. Health Minister Michael McGimpsey said he planned to bring the ban, which he hoped would save lives, into force late next year.Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politicians argued that it should be delayed until 2013 in order to give retailers the time to fund changes to their premises.

Mr. McGimpsey argued that Members of the Legislative Assembly should not put "wealth before health". "Currently in Northern Ireland about 9% of 11 to 16-year-olds regularly smoke. The evidence is strong that if you begin smoking in your teenage years, you're three times more likely to take cancer than if you begin smoking in your 20s. This is very much about protecting our young people."

Chief executive of the HPA Dr Brian Gaffney said they were focusing on the financial cost of smoking. This agency has said stopping a 20-a-day cigarette habit could save smokers up to £170 ($240USD) a month. The message comes ahead of No Smoking Day on Wednesday week.

March 3, 2009 - Alan Landers, who was known as the Winston Man, lost his battle with the lung disease just one month before he was due to testify in court against cigarette manufacturer RJ Reynolds. The 68-year-old had led a multi-million dollar crusade against the tobacco industry, four decades after he first appeared on billboards and in magazine adverts across the U.S. to promote cigarettes as cool.

March 3, 2009 - New York Governor David Paterson has proposed to inflate the state's annual registration fee to sell tobacco at retail from the current $100 per store to $1,000 (annual gross sales of less than $1 million), $2,500 (annual gross sales of $1 million to $10 million) or $5,000 (annual gross sales of more than $10 million) depending on the store's gross sales of everything including motor fuel.

As the legislature deliberates this and other budget proposals, New York Association of Convenience Stores (NYACS)is rallying its members to contact their state legislators in protest.

NYACS president James Calvin: "These obscene increases would come at a time when our cigarette sales have dropped 65% or more over the past eight years, mainly due to the epidemic of cigarette tax evasion sanctioned by the State of New York," Calvin said, adding that "tax-free" Native American competitors do not even bother to register and thus pay no fee. "Essentially, the administration wants to charge us 900% to 4,900% more for the privilege of selling one-third the amount of cigarettes we could be selling if they were enforcing the Tax Law equitably," he concluded.

March 3, 2009 - Norwegian parliament was expected to legislate for a display ban on tobacco by Easter (April 12, 2009) with an implementation period of six months. This means tobacco would be removed from all public display by October. (Norway is not a member of the EU but is part of the Europe Economic Area.)

The Moodie Report has subsequently learned just how severe the display restrictions are likely to be. On the domestic market, retailers of tobacco would have to apply for a special license to sell tobacco, and these licenses would probably be restricted to specialist outlets and (possibly) the country's biggest retail chains. But petrol stations and newsagents would be unlikely to get permission to retail tobacco.

Norwegian travel retail is likely to have to implement a model similar to that in place in another Nordic state, Iceland (In 2001, Iceland became the first jurisdiction in the world to implement a law banning all retail displays of tobacco.). Retailers would have to create a stand-alone room in their stores for tobacco, with frosted, not clear glass, so customers could not see inside. No advertising would be permitted.

Note the week is "Tobacco Free" - not cigarette free or smoking free. All tobacco products with no exceptions are highly addictive and dangerous to health; as the World Health Organization tells us "Tobacco is Deadly in Any Form or Disguise." Protect your children - your future leaders.The Florida Legislature begins its 60-day session today, Tuesday, March 3, 2009 in a desperate dash for cash to close what could add up to $5 billion-or-bigger budget hole next year. Republican Rep. Juan Zapata, R- Miami, has filed a bill to raise Florida's low 34-cent per pack tax on smokes by 65 cents and raise taxes on other tobacco products. The revenue generated would help finance research, health care and services to the disabled. Economists used to think a $1-per-pack of cigarettes increase would net Florida a cool $1 billion. That figure dropped to $750 million earlier this year because of declining demand for the product.

State lawmakers last raised Florida's cigarette tax in 1990 by about 10 cents. It is one of four states that has not increased its tax since. Florida is now 46th in the country for the amount of its cigarette tax, followed only by South Carolina, Kentucky, Missouri and Mississippi.

More: Tobacco Free Florida, the statewide youth prevention and adult cessation campaign, launched in February 2008. The Campaign has reached millions of Floridians through its advertising, online social media, grassroots initiatives, educational outreach and public relations efforts. Funded by Florida's tobacco settlement fund, the campaign engages culturally and economically diverse audiences with its high impact messaging.

March 3, 2009 - Dr. Peter Beaumont, president of the Australian Medical Association’s Northern Territory branch believes people who smoke should be banned from working in the health system because it is akin to allowing convicted pedophiles to roam among children. Beaumont, a medical expert has lashed out at nicotine-addicted doctors and nurses, saying they should not be allowed to work with children or in indigenous communities."You wouldn't send pedophiles to work in an area where there were lots of children … so why shouldn't we limit people who have a very bad health habit? With everything else being equal, we should have a situation where a non-smoker should get the job over a smoker."

About 60 percent of indigenous people smoke. "In some remote areas that can be as high as 80 per cent, and yet I constantly see groups of health workers standing around their four-wheel-drives all having a puff before they head off to see these people," Dr Beaumont said.

Indigenous people (lived there before they were discovered by the outside world) make up almost 30% of the Northern Territory’s population compared to just over 2% nationally. Of these people, over 70% live in remote or rural areas, from large communities such as Wadeye, with a population over 2,300, to small outstations with a population of only four or five.

Simon Chapman, a professor in public health at the University of Sydney, said the call to discriminate against smoking employees was "pure myopia". A spokeswoman for NSW Health said that staff were encouraged to quit smoking but they would not be subjected to any form of discrimination.

March 2, 2009 - The annual "Roger Award for Worst Transnational Corporation" operating in New Zealand has gone to British American Tobacco (BAT). The award, named after former finance minister and ACT Party co-founder Sir Roger Douglas and organised by the Campaign Against Foreign Control of Aotearoa, was announced in Auckland tonight.

The panel of six judges said BAT's product killed 5000 people every year and ruined the lives of tens of thousands. It perennially refuses to take responsibility for the social and economic consequences of its activity, while maintaining a major public relations effort to subvert the efforts of the Government to reduce cigarette consumption."

The market for Tobacco in New Zealand increased between 2001-2006, growing at an average annual rate of 2.1%. The leading company in the market in 2006 was British American Tobacco plc. The second-largest player was Imperial Tobacco Group PLC with Altria Group, Inc. in third place. (Tobacco in New Zealand to 2011, Datamonitor, 9/2007, Pages: 111hh)

March 2, 2009 - British American Tobacco (BAT) Kenya has declined to support charity organizations because of stringent tobacco control laws that have not only banned smoking in public places, but has also prohibited cigarette companies from advertising their products and sponsoring social or charity events. Kenyan Parliament in August 2007 passed the National Tobacco Control Act and then signed into law by President Kibaki in September 2007. The law took effect within 8-months (came into force on 8th July 2008) after signing and bans tobacco advertising, promotion and sponsorship, increases cigarette taxes and takes other strong steps to reduce tobacco use. The Tobacco Act banned smoking in public places which included any indoor, enclosed area which is open to the public or any part of the public, or to which members of the public ordinarily have access, and includes a work place and public conveyance.Hotels, restaurants, bars, schools, hospitals, court buildings, ferries, trains and any other form of public transport are covered under this Act.

Kenya an East African nation with 34 million people. More than one-quarter of the population smokes, including 13 percent of school-age children. An estimated 12,000 Kenyans die prematurely each year from diseases related to tobacco use and exposure. (Kenyan Parliament Passes Strong Anti-Tobacco Legislation, Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids International Resource Center)

BAT has historically enjoyed a monopoly position in Kenya. The Kenyan arm of the transnational BAT rules the roost with close to 60 percent of market share, followed by StanCom Company (25 percent) and Mastermind Tobacco Kenya. BAT Kenya, Ltd. engages in the manufacture and sale of cigarettes in Kenya. It offers its products primarily under various brands, such as Dunhill, Benson & Hedges, Pall Mall, Embassy, Sportsman, Sweet Menthol, Crown Bird, Safari, Score, Rooster, and Crescent & Star. ( British-American Tobacco Kenya, AfDevinfo - Organization Record 12/2007)

In the c-store update of January 8, 2009 - we wrote from February 1, 2009 through March 28, 2009 Altria will be reducing the price Copenhagen and Skoal by one dollar to try to increase sales. Sales of both Copenhagen and even Skoal have picked up but we don't think at the expense of sales of Grizzly. C-store owners wonder what will happen after March 28th with the increase in the federal tax on tobacco starting April 1, 2009. Also see C-store update - February 7, 2009.

We reported in a previous C-store update that Conwood's Kodiak, that competes at the premium moist snuff level with Altria/UST's Skoal and Copenhagen, price will be reduced one dollar and there would be a special Grizzly promotion. Well it finally happened - Kodiak sells for a one dollar less - now the same price of Skoal and Copenhagen and Grizzly has been marked down 50 cents..

We know that tobacco companies want to keep in touch with their tobacco users. Mike Szymanczyk now the CEO of Altria, Inc. has stated that Philip Morris owes their success to the ability to connect with adult tobacco consumers through the in-store experience and the development of one-to-one relationships using their database of 25 million adult cigarette smokers (Remarks, Investor Presentation, 3/11/2008).

March 2, 2009 - There are six hookah lounges within a three-mile radius of the University of South Florida's Tampa campus. Hookah (water pipe, sheesha, shisha, narghile), an ancient form of smoking from India and the Middle East, is growing in popularity in the United States, especially among 18- to 24-year-olds. But there are health concerns.

"Prior to smoking hookah, I was pretty anti-smoking," Mike Higgins said. "I don't smoke cigarettes for that reason. Cigarettes are gross, and if you continue smoking them, you would get addicted. Right now, if everyone in here was smoking cigarettes, I know I wouldn't be able to sit in here."

March 1, 2009 - The 62-cent hike in the federal cigarette tax going into effect April 1 stands to make a significant dent in the wallets of smokers in Hickory, Morganton and Lenoir areas of North Carolina. This area according to the most recent Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey from 2007 is ranked 10th in the U.S. in adult smoking.

Doug Gantt's customers at Smoker Haven on Springs Road in Hickory is telling Gantt that he's going to have to quit, or at least switch to a cheaper brand. Gantt is concerned about what the increase will do to his business. Another patron thinks smoking is most widespread among poor people and said he can't understand why that is the easiest population to tax.

Top 10 metro areas in the U.S. with highest percentages of adult smokers ( Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey from 2007 )

Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids estimates that the increase in the federal tobacco tax will result in numerous public health benefits, including increasing the total number of kids alive today who will not become smokers by 1,992,000 and increasing the number of current adult smokers in the U.S. who will quit by 1,020,000. (SCHIP Expansion Financed With a 62-Cent Increase in the Federal Cigarette Tax, Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, 2/5/2009)

"To me, the most striking aspect in this study is the reduction of pollution inside cafes and restaurants by over 35 percent. Passive smoking has been shown to increase the risk of coronary heart disease and the recent smoking ban is obviously having a beneficial effect on both smokers and non-smokers."